Please Tell Us About Yourself

[Pixieglitter]

I'm very interested in knowing about my CT friends and their lives. I've made so many online friends here! I know all of you have had fascinating lives, and I'd like to learn more about you.

I'm a single mom of 2 now grown boys, they're 21 and 24, I completely raised them by myself as I have no family here in Alabama (they're all mostly in South Carolina). I've been divorced over 20 years and moved to Alabama from California when I was going through my divorce. I'd lived here as a teenager. I grew up an Army brat and moved around a LOT throughout my childhood. It was a crazy life and I wanted my boys to have a real hometown, and they do!

My mom taught me how to crochet when I was 7, and she also taught me how to arrange flowers, including Ikebana a Hawaiian style of flower arranging (we lived in Hawaii when I was a kid). Ikebana is a very beautiful, abstract way of flower arranging. I've always been passionate about all kinds of crafts. In addition to crochet, I love making all kinds of wreaths. I've made jewelry with glass beads and pearls, combined with old vintage costume jewelry from the 1940s and 50s. I recently painted several old wonderful jewelry boxes I bought off eBay and I embellished them with vintage jewelry. I used to have an online business where I sold old estate costume jewelry. In addition to working full time, I did that for several years and I loved it! I've bought all the stuff to make a wide mesh ribbon wreath, I just need to look up the instructions online. The ones I've seen at craft shows are so pretty! I've also got several rolls of fabric tulle to add in with the mesh. I've made several large silk flower arrangements and I've tried to teach myself how to knit. I'm not at all very good at knitting. It's difficult for me to find the patience to learn it lol.

Tell us about your life. We really want to know!!

Shelley

[LI Roe]

Okay, a little about me. I am a 63 year old widow (going on about 20 sometimes, LOL) with no children from either of my marriages, divorced from first and second hubby passed a few months after I took an early enhanced retirement package in 1999 from the phone company. Am currently living in the home we bought back in 1991 but now have decided to move, already booked a trip this month to another state to check out the area, am really excited about it. I have other areas in case this is not what I want but you never know. While I have friends and neighbors here, I have told them it is not their responsibility to make my life complete and I have no problem moving to someplace new and not know anyone. If my grandparents could move from Italy (where my mom was born) and not know anyone except my grandfathers' one brother and barely knew English back in the 1920's, there is no reason why I should be hesitant to move ( I have no family here anymore (dad, younger brother and mom all passed, in that order) and unfortunately, have no contact with either sides of the family anymore, except for an occasional call from the two remaining aunts, one on mom's side, one on dad's side and everyone is in other states. But despite what has happened over the years, I refuse to be bitter or unhappy. Life is way too short for that and I savor each day.

Crocheting is my favorite craft of all. My mom taught me when I was a preteen (I used to follow her around and ask what she was doing, was it easy, could she show me, I think she taught me just to shut me up, LOL). But neither one of us ever thought it would become such a lifelong passion and the majority of the items I make are donated to charitable organizations. I can sort of knit, can cast on and do the knit stitch but just need hands on with someone to show me the purl stitch again (used to knit basic things eons ago) so I can say I know how to do it. I also prefer crocheting, to me it is easier and faster and I think because my mom taught me, it is even more in my heart.

I have been involved, both when I worked and in retirement, in hobby groups. We did everything from stuffed little hug a bears (often given to local fire depts to give to those, especially children, during a traumatic time, like after a fire) to sewing little felt book bags for kindergarteners and put a book in them, to stuffing Christmas stockings and holding toy drives. That was usually when I worked, right now hobby is mainly retirees and we do crocheted and knit items for various places.

I love to walk (try for 5-10 miles a day) and garden, read, bike ride, sew (mom was a seamstress by trade and also taught me a lot that home ec didn't cover). I keep active, do as much in my house that I can do (like paint and faux finishes) and mow the lawn, though I am afraid of the edger so I have someone do it for me and it's worth the money.

I am definitely a yarnoholic and no 12 step program is ever going to change that, LOL!! And one of my mottos is "I like to get the most I can for the least amount of money" and I can say I have. And I dance like no one is watching and if they are, well, join me!!! And I like to do what I like and as long as I don't hurt myself or anyone else, that is fine!!

So that is it for now (I'm Italian and can go on forever) so I will say nite-nite for now.

Roe

[kl1000]

Hello! I am Larisa. I have kids 30 and 34 and old enough to have them. I am programmer and computer specialist also. I crochet doilies

[Jean Marie]

Hi. I am married to a sweet man. His name is Mark. We don't have any children. Like you Shelley, I moved around a lot as a child. My Dad was in the Air Force. I bet your family has traveling stories just like our family does. We traveled by bus. I never got my drivers license but I get around. I too, ride bike sometimes and like to read. I'm reading through the Bible. I'm reading in Isaiah now. Besides reading the Bible in the morning, I have 2 devotionals, (was 3 devotionals)( I might decide to have 3 devotionals again), a book that I write down what I'm thankful for each day, and another book to write down my thoughts (or the thoughts GOD puts in my mind - which is usually a gospel song. Sometimes I don't know what I'm going to write even after I get the book out and write the date and then something will come to mind. and I have my morning Prayer, reading Scriptures before bed and my evening Prayer.

After devotions and showering and getting dressed I usually don't know what I'm going to do for the day because I take one day at a time but I always seem to have something I want to do or know of something that needs to be done.

I learned to crochet when I was probably in my teens or twenty's. A few years ago I learned how to knit. To me, crocheting is more relaxing. I also like other crafts but I have done a lot of crocheting. I can play piano but haven't practiced it lately. I'm bringing some music books when I leave for camping tomorrow. They have a piano there. Maybe I'll get some practicing in. I'm in the church choir, in the church nursery when scheduled, sometimes my husband and I have to be Greeters or Serve soda pop (they still say 'serve coffee' instead of serve pop'). I'm also in Bible Study at church.

The computer/craft room is mostly all crafts, etc. I don't know where to go with everything.

Jean Marie

[Granny Grunt]

I am Diana, I have been married for 26 years to Tom and we have three children Brian 25, Brandon 22 and Kendall 19. I love to crochet, knit and love to sew but mostly I focus on painting dolls to look like real babies called reborning this is a time consuming hobby but love to see the look on peoples faces when they find out it is a doll.
I have a Shiloh Shepherd that I totally adore his name is Onyx

[MeerKat]

I am a 70 year old widow. Divorced once and my other 2 husbands past away, one passed away after only 5 years of marriage and the second after 33 years of marriage. Have 2 grown children. A son who lives in Texas and and a daughter who lives in Georgia and have 4 great Grandchildren 2 girls and 2 boys.
A friend of mine taught me how to knit when I lived in Nashville, TN. I loved it there. After my second husband past away I moved back to IL. I knitted occationally through the years but when My daughter was expecting her first child she asked me to make a Noah's ark baby blanket. Couldn't find a pattern in Knitting but found one in Crocheting so taught myself to crochet. Been crocheting ever since.
My 3rd husband passed away last year and then I moved to Georgia, but didn't work out so am moving back to Tn. I have wanted to move there ever since I left 40 years ago.
I have one furbaby, she in a Pomeranian and her name is BooBoo.